Within Aviation
What did the Sherbrooke pilots actually see?
Airline crews reported unusual moving lights near Sherbrooke in February 2023, but the record could not establish their range, speed or nature.
On this page
- What crews reported in February 2023
- Which measurements and records were missing
- Why professional testimony still needs corroboration
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Introduction
The Sherbrooke pilot sightings of 12 February 2023 stand out in Quebec’s aviation-related UFO history not because they produced strong physical evidence, but because they highlight the limits of eyewitness testimony, even when the witnesses are experienced airline crews. Several commercial aircraft crews flying near Sherbrooke independently reported unusual bright lights high above their flight paths, and air traffic controllers confirmed that more than one aircraft was making similar observations. Yet the available records never established the lights’ true distance, altitude, speed or identity. As a result, the case remains genuinely unidentified in the narrow sense that the available evidence was insufficient to reach a confident conclusion, rather than because it demonstrated anything extraordinary.[TVA Nouvelles]tvanouvelles.caTVA NouvellesDe mystérieux ovnis dans la région de Sherbrooke l’hiver dernier | TVA NouvellesJanuary 26, 2024…
Within Quebec’s wider history of aviation-related UFO reports, the Sherbrooke incident is a useful reminder that professional observers can report something unusual accurately while still lacking the measurements needed to determine what they actually saw.
What crews reported in February 2023
During the evening of 12 February 2023, several airline crews flying through Montreal Centre’s controlled airspace near Sherbrooke reported seeing two or three bright white lights well above normal airline cruising altitude. Air traffic control communications indicate that controllers were already aware that multiple aircraft had made similar reports and asked arriving crews whether they were still observing the lights.[TVA Nouvelles]tvanouvelles.caTVA NouvellesDe mystérieux ovnis dans la région de Sherbrooke l’hiver dernier | TVA NouvellesJanuary 26, 2024…
One CargoLux Italia crew, flying from Chicago to Luxembourg at roughly 35,000 feet, described the objects as appearing much higher than their own aircraft. According to the recorded radio exchanges, the crew estimated that the lights might be around 50,000 to 60,000 feet, while stressing that this was only an impression rather than a measured altitude. They described bright white lights that appeared to move, fade and brighten again. At one stage they remarked that the lights resembled satellites, but seemed to move differently from what they expected of satellites. They also suggested that there appeared to be more than one light, sometimes seeming to circle or shift from right to left.[TVA Nouvelles]tvanouvelles.caTVA NouvellesDe mystérieux ovnis dans la région de Sherbrooke l’hiver dernier | TVA NouvellesJanuary 26, 2024…
Reports indicate that the lights remained visible for roughly half an hour, long enough for more than one flight crew to observe them independently. That duration helped distinguish the incident from a brief flash or isolated cockpit reflection, but it did not by itself identify the source.[TVA Nouvelles]tvanouvelles.caTVA NouvellesDe mystérieux ovnis dans la région de Sherbrooke l’hiver dernier | TVA NouvellesJanuary 26, 2024…
Which measurements and records were missing
The Sherbrooke reports became widely discussed after journalists examined Transport Canada incident records in early 2024. What those records show is notable as much for what they omit as for what they contain.[TVA Nouvelles]tvanouvelles.caTVA NouvellesDe mystérieux ovnis dans la région de Sherbrooke l’hiver dernier | TVA NouvellesJanuary 26, 2024…
The missing information includes several measurements that investigators would normally need before determining whether the lights represented an aircraft, satellite, astronomical object, atmospheric phenomenon or something else.
The available record does not establish:
- the actual range to the lights;
- an independently measured altitude;
- radar confirmation of an object at the reported position;
- precise speed or acceleration;
- the objects’ physical size;
- photographs or calibrated optical recordings from the aircraft;
- triangulation using observations from multiple known locations.
Without those measurements, apparent movement cannot automatically be converted into real movement. A light viewed against a dark sky may appear to shift because the observing aircraft is changing heading, climbing or turning. Likewise, an object that seems extremely high may instead be much closer, or vice versa. Human vision alone cannot reliably judge distance against a featureless night sky.
This absence of quantitative data is the central weakness of the case. Although several crews agreed that they were seeing something unusual, agreement alone cannot determine where the lights actually were in three-dimensional space.
Why professional testimony still needs corroboration
Commercial pilots are generally regarded as reliable observers because they spend thousands of hours looking at aircraft lighting, weather and astronomical objects. Their reports therefore deserve careful attention rather than casual dismissal.
However, aviation investigation has long recognised that even trained observers can only describe what appears from their viewpoint. They cannot accurately estimate distance or velocity without external reference points or instrument data. Air traffic control recordings preserve valuable witness testimony, but they do not themselves provide physical measurements.
The Sherbrooke incident illustrates this distinction particularly well. The crews consistently reported unusual lights, yet none could determine their range. Since estimated altitude depended entirely upon perceived distance, the frequently quoted figure of 50,000 to 60,000 feet was an informed guess rather than an instrument reading. If the assumed distance changed, the estimated altitude would change with it.
The case therefore demonstrates an important principle for assessing aviation-related UFO reports: multiple credible witnesses strengthen confidence that an unusual observation occurred, but they do not eliminate the need for independent corroborating evidence.
How the case has been interpreted
Because the available evidence is incomplete, several explanations remain possible without any one being confirmed.
Conventional possibilities include distant aircraft viewed under unusual geometry, satellites producing changing brightness, atmospheric optical effects, or other high-altitude lights whose apparent motion was influenced by the observing aircraft’s own movement. Some commentators have noted that the crew themselves compared the lights with satellites while also expressing doubt because the apparent motion did not match their expectations. That observation is informative, but it is not a definitive identification or rejection of any explanation.[TVA Nouvelles]tvanouvelles.caTVA NouvellesDe mystérieux ovnis dans la région de Sherbrooke l’hiver dernier | TVA NouvellesJanuary 26, 2024…
Equally, the reports do not provide evidence that the lights represented unknown technology. No radar data, sensor recordings or recovered physical evidence have entered the public record to support that interpretation.
The most defensible assessment is therefore a limited one: the lights were genuinely unidentified within the evidence available, but the lack of crucial measurements prevents stronger conclusions in either direction.
Why the Sherbrooke case remains important in Quebec
Among Quebec’s aviation-related UFO reports, the Sherbrooke sightings are valuable precisely because they demonstrate how uncertainty survives even when witnesses are experienced professionals.
The incident shows that:
- multiple independent pilot reports can establish that an unusual observation occurred;
- air traffic control recordings preserve valuable contemporaneous testimony;
- witness agreement cannot substitute for measured range, altitude or speed;
- without radar, optical tracking or triangulation, apparent motion remains difficult to interpret.
Rather than strengthening extraordinary claims, the Sherbrooke reports underline the importance of evidence quality. The case remains one of Quebec’s better-documented modern pilot sightings because the radio communications and Transport Canada incident record preserve what the crews experienced. At the same time, it also remains one of the province’s clearest examples of how missing measurements can prevent investigators from determining exactly what experienced observers saw.[tvanouvelles.ca]tvanouvelles.caTVA NouvellesDe mystérieux ovnis dans la région de Sherbrooke l’hiver dernier | TVA NouvellesJanuary 26, 2024…
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Endnotes
1.
Source: experiencersupport.org
Link:https://www.experiencersupport.org/declassified/two-or-three-very-strange-lights-in-the-sky-high-above-the-flight-paths-sherbrooke-quebec
2.
Source: ised-isde.canada.ca
Link:https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/science/en/office-chief-science-advisor/sky-canada-project/management-public-reporting-unidentified-aerial-phenomena-canada
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of Public Reporting of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena in CanadaJune 1, 2025 — MESSAGE FROM THE CHIEF SCIENCE ADVISOR OF CANADA Whether sat...
Published: June 1, 2025
3.
Source: vice.com
Title: Canadian Military Documents UFO Sightings, Intelligence Report Reveals
Link:https://www.vice.com/en/article/canadian-military-rcaf-documents-ufo-sightings-intelligence-reports-reveal/
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April 12, 2021 — CANADIAN MILITARY DOCUMENTS UFO SIGHTINGS, INTELLIGENCE REPORT REVEALS By Daniel Otis April 12, 2021, 2:18pm Share: * *...
Published: April 12, 2021
4.
Source: tvanouvelles.ca
Link:https://www.tvanouvelles.ca/2024/01/26/de-mysterieux-ovnis-dans-la-region-de-sherbrooke-lhiver-dernier
Source snippet
TVA NouvellesDe mystérieux ovnis dans la région de Sherbrooke l’hiver dernier | TVA NouvellesJanuary 26, 2024...
Published: January 26, 2024
5.
Source: tvanouvelles.ca
Title: Image tirée du rapport de Ufology
Link:https://www.tvanouvelles.ca/2024/03/04/les-quebecois-toujours-champions-des-observations-dovnis
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Les Québécois toujours champions des observations d’ovnis | TVA NouvellesMarch 4, 2024 — LES QUÉBÉCOIS TOUJOURS CHAMPIONS DES OBSERVATION...
Published: March 4, 2024
6.
Source: tvanouvelles.ca
Title: E N IMAGES | D’étranges colonnes de lumière dans le ciel | TVA Nouvelles
Link:https://www.tvanouvelles.ca/2023/01/31/en-images–detranges-colonnes-de-lumiere-dans-le-ciel-en-mauricie
Source snippet
EN IMAGES | D’étranges colonnes de lumière dans le ciel | TVA NouvellesJanuary 31, 2023 — EN IMAGES | D’ÉTRANGES COLONNES DE LUMIÈRE DANS...
Published: January 31, 2023
Additional References
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February 3, 2023 — CANADIAN PILOTS WERE WARNED OF ‘UNTETHERED BALLOON’ AMID CHINA SURVEILLANCE CONCERNS Image Image By Aaron D'Andrea & S...
Published: February 3, 2023
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Link:https://www.norad.mil/Newsroom/Press-Releases/Article/3777461/norad-conducts-routine-intercept-of-russian-aircraft-approaching-alaskan-adiz/
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16, 2023 NORAD CONDUCTS ROUTINE INTERCEPT OF RUSSIAN AIRCRAFT APPROACHING ALASKAN ADIZ PETERSON SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo. – The Alaskan Reg...
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14, 2023 NORAD CONDUCTS ROUTINE INTERCEPT OF RUSSIAN AIRCRAFT APPROACHING ALASKAN ADIZ North American Aerospace Defense Command PETERSON...
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EWS’ POST CTV News 63,919 followers 2y At least four flights reported 'multiple lights sometimes in a triangle formation' high above the...
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February 17, 2023 — ‘WE’RE NOT CRAZY’: LISTEN TO A FLIGHT REPORT UNUSUAL LIGHTS NEAR YELLOWKNIFE IN JANUARY By CNN Newsource Publishe...
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Canada's Secret UFO Recovery Operation: OP UAP23 FilesJune 18, 2026 — A DECADE OF PILOT AND PUBLIC UFO REPORTS The second half of the rel...
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Canadian North crew reports 2 lights dancing in the sky over Yellowknife • Latest UFO SightingsFebruary 12, 2023 — CANADIAN NORTH CREW RE...
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Canadian Flight Crew Reports Anomalous Lights near Yellowknife, Canada — A Singular ForteanFebruary 23, 2023 — CANADIAN FLIGHT CREW REPOR...
Published: February 23, 2023